


here's hoping we collide.

by orphxus (impxria)



Category: Joker Game (Anime)
Genre: F/M, M/M, Reincarnation AU, summary from purity ring, the html on this site will never want me to win
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-13
Updated: 2016-07-13
Packaged: 2018-07-23 18:00:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,477
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7474257
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/impxria/pseuds/orphxus
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <span class="small">you be the moon and i’ll be the earth</span>
  <br/>
  <span class="small">and when we burst,</span>
  <br/>
  <span class="small">start over, oh darling.</span>
  <br/>
  <span class="small">begin again.</span>
</p>
            </blockquote>





	here's hoping we collide.

  
**i**.

Ten. Twenty. Thirty. Forty lashes.

Forty-five, no-- forty-six? He can’t remember. All he remembers from the past few days is the vivid sensation of drowning and harsh blows that leave bruises in their wake.

Truth serums and ropes around his wrists; hazy vision and a weary acceptance of defeat. Red marks adorn his back and his head hangs low. It stings, it stings, it—

A sharp inhale between clenched teeth, then a worn smile.

_Not coming home. I’m not coming home_.

Home.

He’s suddenly reminded of the many nights they spent sitting around the table, dealing cards and poker chips. Jitsui’s signaling Hatano again, Miyoshi’s eyes flicker towards Tazaki for a split second and your fingers gently tap against the table—one, two, three, four times—could it be for him?

No, it’s a fake signal-- maybe. He knows how much you like to trick him.

Forty-seven lashes.

He’s good for nothing now. No matter how much they hurt or break him, he’ll never tell them any information. His pain tolerance has grown with training, but at this point—

Forty-eight, forty-nine, fifty.

There are no more traces of him. Yuuki has the intel. 

He’s completed his mission.

He just wishes it wasn’t his last one.

It’s okay; he remembers telling Emma this when Amari went his first mission ever since he took her in. He’s not going to see them again. No more pestering his brothers, no more of Emma’s goofy smiles whenever he tickles her, and no more peaceful moments with you.

Spies should never have emotional attachments; they all know this. But family is family and hearts can never deny the ones you love.

You could never bring yourself to tell him to come home. Just a “see you”. But actions are louder than words and he knows they held more weight than it seemed.

Fifty-one.

It’s almost time.

He thinks of you.

When he was first captured, none of his allies had even come to mind-- only methods of escape. Spies should never immediately think of their partner or their loved ones when something happens; at that point, loyalties are divided and the possibility of a mission being compromised is too high.

You couldn’t be his first thought. But you’ll be his last.

Fifty-two.

Eyelashes flutter. He can’t stay awake.

Don’t die, don’t kill.

_Sorry, Boss. This is the one thing I can’t do._

Maybe in another life, he thinks. Maybe he’ll find you and fall in love all over again. Maybe you can actually consider yourself in a relationship instead of refusing to acknowledge that whatever you have is too much for a spy.

In a better life. A safer life.

He almost laughs. When did he ever start believing in stuff like that?

Fifty-three. Fifty-four. Fifty-five.

_It’s alright, Kaminaga. I’ll see you later._

He’s going crazy. Days of torture and he’s succumbing to insanity. But if you’re the last thing he’ll ever see or hear, then he’s okay with it.

fifty-six fifty-seven fifty-eight fifty-nine—

His vision goes black.

**ii**.

“You still do that, you know.”

“Do what?”

“Put your arms behind your head.”

Hatano raises a brow before his lips quirk into a smile.

“Yeah, and Miyoshi still freaks out about his hair.”

Quiet laughter exchanged in the small café. Comforting silence and the bittersweet recollection of the past life. You’ve learn to adapt to nearly everything, but there’s still difficulty grasping that you’ve found yourself in this world. No need for lies. No need for aliases. You can be who you were; you can be the person you once threw away.

And it makes you feel vulnerable. It makes you feel exposed, even though you’ve yet to share your past with anyone. You haven’t learned to fully relax; your senses are always alert and you’ve always got a plan to escape from a bad situation.

You wonder how the others are doing.

“I miss them.” You blurt out, thoughtfully gazing out the window. “I miss Tazaki’s terrible magic tricks. I miss Fukumoto’s cooking.”

Hatano’s stomach growls at the reminder; he stares blankly at you with those half-lidded eyes for a moment before stealing your slice of cake.

You found him a year ago. And since then, you’ve always met up at this place and done the same thing. You’ll banter for a bit, make snarky remarks at each other, he’ll steal your food, and then you’ll sit in silence. 

“I don’t miss those damn pigeons.” He murmurs absentmindedly, fork still in his mouth.

“But you miss Tazaki and the others.”

“I never said that.”

A faint smile settles on your lips, though the content visage is short-lived.

“Hey,” Hatano chips in, brows slightly furrowed when he sees that hint of defeat adorning your features, “you know we’re going to find them again, right?”

No guarantees. Only half of you have reunited in this new world; who knows where the rest of them are? Odagiri could be in Manchuria, Kaminaga could be halfway across the world.

“I found you and Miyoshi. Miyoshi found Jitsui and Amari. So you’ll find him.”

You watch the flower blossom in the teapot.

“Do you believe in fate, Hatano?”

He chuckles.

“No,” comes the response, arms stretching behind his head, “but I believe in them.”

**iii**.

“You want to go to the park?”

“It’s a nice day out.” Miyoshi says over the phone. “Are you too lazy to go outside?”

“Do you know what happens when you make assumptions?”

“Yes. I’m always right.”

“Shut up, Miyoshi.”

A hum of amusement on the other line.

“Amari is at work and Emma wants to go to the park.”

“And your hair?”

“What of it?”

“The wind will mess it up.”

“Nothing messes my hair up.”

He’s probably smiling like a smug fool right now. You bite back a sarcastic remark, pinching the bridge of your nose.

“I’ll be there.”

 **.     .     .**

There’s a certain place Emma loves. It’s one of the quieter areas in the park; a lone bench hides under the shade of an oak tree, surrounded by daffodils. It’s a beautiful place-- even more so when you remember all the memories you’ve made here.

As you approach, your lips curve when you recall those important moments. The time Emma ran straight into your arms when she recognized you, the time Frate managed to get off his leash and Hatano and Miyoshi had to run after him--

There are many things that bring happiness in this life. There’s no doubt that you’re content here, but even as a former spy, it’s difficult to leave that past life. But you won’t throw it away like you had once before with your real identity. You’ll remember it for the rest of your days and carry it with a light heart.

You snap from the trance when the leaves crunch, but no one falls into your line of sight. A quick glance at your phone and a faint hint of worry that seeps in your chest.

Miyoshi is ten minutes late-- an odd occurrence for someone who finds disdain in those who are even a few seconds late.

You dial his number, the faint beep of the phone ringing in your ears.

Voicemail.

Another beep. You begin to speak, but then--

“Remember what daffodils mean?”

The phone nearly leaves your grasp. You’d recognize that voice anywhere.

_Kaminaga_.

When you turn around, he stands before you, a cheeky smile on his face. You struggle to even gather the words to greet him, but he simply continues talking as if this situation was normal. And when he approaches, tension runs through your body, though your expression shows little shock. Despite all your training to keep those emotions hidden, he can see that faint disbelief that surfaces in warm eyes.

But he walks past you, crouching in the field of yellow. Fingers gingerly brush over petals before he picks the flowers, posture coming to a full stand as he closes the distance between you two once more.

“They represent rebirth and new beginnings.” He says, placing the daffodils in your hands. “But you already knew that-- you know, since we had to take that boring botany class during training.”

A sense of relief comes when he hears your laugh; silence takes place again and you’re left staring at each other with nostalgia.

“I’m home.”

He said that every time he came back from a mission. A bright smile breaks out on your features, the sudden urge to cry pushed aside when you see Miyoshi and Emma approaching from afar. You should have known he'd set you up like this.

But then you stare at Kaminaga with a look that he notices is only reserved for him and he finds gratitude that it hasn’t changed, even when the world has.

And you tell him the same thing you always did when he returned.

“Welcome home, Kaminaga.”


End file.
